News

Meet Our Newest Rescue, Wrigley

Posted May 19, 2017

Friends, meet Wrigley, one of the beautiful reasons why we are fundraising so hard right now. At age 11-1/2 years old, Wrigley found herself at an open-admission shelter when her guardian could no longer care for her. Sweet and well-mannered, a shelter environment was no place for this old girl.

Another rescue initially thought about taking this girl into their program, but when they learned of all of her medical needs, they backed out. The shelter contacted us, and Wrigley made her way to Young at Heart. This little girl is so lovable, and has quite a few medical needs we are addressing. For one, she has "dry eye", which means her eyes do not produce the tears needed to keep her eyes lubricated. She also has cherry eye, a condition where the third eyelid protrudes in the corner of her eye, which is correctable with surgery. Between the two eye conditions, she has minimal sight, but she is very well adjusted to it. She has a minor heart murmur, horribly infected ears, and a mouthful of rotten teeth that need to be removed. But on top of all of this, she was exposed to a nasty upper respiratory infection at the shelter, and within just a few days of coming to Young at Heart, she became so sick that she had to spend 72 hours in the ICU to ensure that she pulled through.

Senior pets that end up in shelters have often been well-loved, but often lack a lifetime of good veterinary care. Once they come to Young at Heart, we're committed to catching each pet up on the care they need so that we can to allow them the most comfortable and enjoyable golden years possible. We take in a lot of pets with advanced medical issues where, even with deeply discounted veterinary fees, costs add up quickly. On average, we spend $1000 per senior pet we rescue and get ready for adoption. The ones like Wrigley can cost thousands more. Thankfully, Wrigley was just released from the ICU today, back into the care of her loving foster home. She is breathing easier and on the mend. And through all of this, she remains the sweetest and snuggliest little girl.